CCS Staff In the Know
YOUR FEEDBACK IS NEEDED
Please take the time to review the 2020-2021 Traditional Calendar Drafts. We appreciate you taking the time in providing feedback on your preference of the two options of the 2020-2021 CCS Academic Calendar developed with the input of a committee of CCS educators over the past weeks. The calendar options meet the requirements of recent legislation passed into law by the NC General Assembly. Both calendars have the required start date for students of August 17, 2020.

Please review the calendar options carefully and vote for the option you prefer. A summary for each calendar option is provided at the bottom of the document. You will notice a new type of instructional day (Remote Learning) has been added to both calendars as required by the new law. These are days that students will not physically be in school; however, there will be assignments provided for students to complete. Should significant loss of instructional time occur in the fall semester, high school first semester exams may be moved to January 2020.

The results of this survey will be shared with the Craven County Board of Education as they work to adopt the 2020-2021 CCS Academic Calendar.
THE DEADLINE TO RESPOND TO THIS SURVEY IS FRIDAY, JUNE 12 at 3PM.
CLICK THE LINK TO COMPLETE THE SURVEY:
https://forms.gle/Wo6RHGYDBkNcN1R78
The calendar options are included in the survey and are attached for you to review here:
NC School Board Call for Action to Eliminate Inequities and Racism 
“This will take more than being empathetic to those who suffer under these inequities and racism, it will take intentional, determined, relentless commitment and work from all, especially those of us who are white and in positions of power and leadership, to end this societal pandemic. Our children’s education, their future and our future with them, depends on it.” N.C. State Board of Education Chairman Eric Davis 
Audio from the State Board of Education meeting can be accessed here .
Homeless Updates
We need to know about your families that have lost housing due to COVID-19!
Due to COVID-19, some of our families have faced difficult times and may have been evicted or had to move in with family/friends, stay in hotels or even go to one of our homeless shelters. If you become aware of a student that has become “homeless” (living with others due to economic hardship, in a hotel/motel/camper, or in a shelter, etc) please email Debbie Hodges at debbie.hodges@cravenk12.org . She will need the name of the student and what their current situation is (hotel, camper, shelter, car, living with others) and the date they became homeless or the date you became aware of their situation. Federal reporting guidelines require us to keep a list of students that become homeless due to this particular event (COVID-19) in addition to our regular homeless annual reporting.
Parent Phone Numbers and Emails
Teachers -  Some of you have obtained more updated phone numbers and email addresses for parents during our remote learning time.  Please check Powerschool for your students to see if the phone numbers and email addresses that you have are in PS. If not, send the more recent information to your data manager to update Powerschool.  
Apple Professional Learning
In an effort to keep you informed of new opportunities for learning, here is an update of the upcoming Apple Education Learning Series. 

We would like to invite your educators to join Apple for a series of conferences led by our Apple Professional Learning Specialists. Each virtual conference will run for approximately 45 minutes and will provide an opportunity for educators to experience the videos in our Apple Education Learning Series and engage in dialogue with our team
Tuesday, June 9:
Increase Productivity with AssistiveTouch -  Register Here
9:00am Central
AssistiveTouch is a built-in accessibility feature that lets you adapt the iPad Multi-Touch screen to your physical needs. In this video, you’ll learn how to customize gestures and make other features accessible with just a touch from the AssistiveTouch menu. Increase productivity with new ways to search, take screenshots, and work with multiple apps. 

Prepare Resources for Remote Learning -  Register Here
10:00am Central
This session will help educators learn how to get up and running for remote learning with iPad. We’ll explore ways to access school resources and find Apps that support remote learning. Tips include using built-in iPad features to scan documents and stay organized, using Markup to annotate teacher materials and student work, and getting set up with voice memos, and more.

Create and Share Presentations and Demos -  Register Here
11:00am   Central
Presenting information in compelling ways is even more important when you’re not able to be face-to-face with your students. In this session we’ll show you how to use the built-in features in iPad to create demos and instructional videos and share them with your colleagues and students. Using Keynote, or any presentation tool, you’ll learn how to record content and create demos on iPad for use with your students.

Create Engaging Video with Clips -  Register Here
1:00pm Central
Clips is a free app that lets teachers and students easily create and share fun and engaging videos. We’ll show you how educators can use Clips to create instructional videos for exploring new skills and ideas — and how students can make videos to share what they’ve learned.

NEW - Promote Active Learning through Creativity -  Register Here
1:00pm Central
Nurturing creativity with students helps develop skills needed for lifelong, active learning. In this video, you’ll learn how to engage students in creative learning activities using iPad built-in features like Camera to capture images, and Markup to personify an object or highlight historical clues. Using Pages, students can bring these objects together in a writing assignment or science report and add audio recordings, drawings, and more.
Tuesday, June 9 Continued:
Connect and Collaborate Remotely -  Register Here
2:00pm Central
When educators and learners aren’t in the same room, strategies for communication are essential for continuing the learning process and collaborating with colleagues. In this session, you’ll learn how to stay connected, collaborate, and coach your students remotely with tools like Pages, Numbers, Keynote, Notes, FaceTime, Messages, and Voice Memos.

Accessibility: Improve Reading Fluency -  Register Here
3:00pm Central
Powerful assistive features are built into iPad to support your vision, hearing, motor skills, learning, and literacy. In this video, you’ll learn how features such as Speak Screen, Safari Reader, and Speech Controller enable reading fluency, comprehension, and composition for every learning style.

Create Interactive Worksheets with Pages -  Register Here
4:00pm Central
It’s easy to turn traditional worksheets into fun and creative learning assignments. In this session you’ll learn how to take a built-in template in Pages and quickly customize it with placeholders for text, photos, and even a personalized video from you to guide your students. You’ll see how to share this new assignment as a template which lets students easily customize it with their own content.

Wednesday, June 10:
IT Spotlight: Prepare and Personalize Devices for Learners (For IT Staff) -  Register Here
3:00pm Central
Apple tools and services make it easy to manage devices and configure them for remote learning. In this session, IT audiences will learn about essential tasks and resources needed to set up and manage Apple devices. Topics include selecting a deployment model, enrolling devices in a mobile device management solution, and deploying core apps to students. 
We will also learn how Apple School Manager works with a mobile device management solution to secure devices, facilitate communication and collaboration, and personalize iPad to support diverse learning styles and requirements.

You can find an updated list of sessions available each day at:   https://apple.co/apls-virtual-conferences
Upcoming webinar on how to acquire and use baseline data .
Has the current crisis caused gaps in the critical data you need to plan the 2020-21 school year? How do you know if at-home learning opportunities have been effective, or if your students are fully prepared for the next school year?
ACT can help you acquire and use the baseline data you need to start the school year strong. Join us for a free webinar for K-12 education leaders about the importance of baseline data in planning your students’ next educational steps.
All About That Baseline: Using Baseline Data for a Strong Start This Fall
Date: Tuesday, June 9 | 11 a.m. ET / 8 a.m . PT
Duration: 30 minutes (plus Q&A)
Who should attend: K-12 curriculum and assessment planners, education leaders, and educators preparing for the upcoming school year
To sign up click HERE
As a follow-up to the Arts Ed PLCs the NCDPI team has held over the past two weeks, content-specific PLCs will be held for teachers to discuss their ideas, successes, and challenges when facing the 2020-2021 school year. The NCDPI Arts Ed team will be able to more deeply explore how specific dance, music, theatre arts, and visual arts standards can be utilized in creative, effective and meaningful remote learning. Break-out rooms will also be utilized for different sub-contents or grade level groups to meet and discuss more specifically to their needs.  
Come ready with:
a cup of coffee (or your favorite afternoon pick me up!)
your questions
your best remote learning arts standards aligned lessons
thoughts surrounding how to successfully teach in the fall
Click on the links below to register for your 3pm sessions!
Remote Learning Silver Lining Stories is a platform for our arts educators to share brief narratives and visual images about the innovative ways students are learning online during the COVID-19 pandemic. These stories can be about everything from engaging projects and creative ways you are using online technology in teaching your content to how the arts are helping support the social and emotional needs of your students. NCDPI Arts Education will share these stories via social media, therefore we will need a media release for any student likeness.
 
1. Be submitted online using the form below.
Narratives or Visuals (pictures and/or video) may include:
· creative new ways you are using online technology to teach the arts;
· how the arts are helping to support the social and emotional needs of your students;
2. Be no more than 250 words.
3. Include one photograph, video or audio file that represents the story (if possible).
4. Be written in a positive tone, even if you are describing an obstacle or challenge.
5. Highlight those that are impacted and those involved (students, colleagues and administrators).
 
The Remote Learning Silver Lining Stories submissions will:
• Be reviewed (and possibly edited slightly) by NCDPI Arts Ed staff before posting on the NCDPI Arts Ed website and social media;
• Be posted with media files if available (please be sure photo rights are obtained and necessary credits submitted with the image);
 
Remote Learning Silver Lining Stories enable our educators to share with each other and the larger North Carolina arts education community the many ways we can deliver excellent standards-driven instruction for our students during this challenging time.
Adventure up the Coast with
NC Aquariums!
Please share with teachers, students and parents!
In this new virtual camp, campers will receive a program kit and have the opportunity to virtually travel along the North Carolina coast to all four North Carolina Aquarium sites - Fort Fisher, Pine Knoll Shores, Roanoke Island and Jennette’s Pier - where they will meet animals and meet the staff that make each location special! As campers “travel”, they will have the chance to virtually experience some amazing natural destinations in each region of our coast and learn about animals that can be found in each habitat. From the Venus fly traps and gopher frogs along the Cape Fear coast to the sea turtles and pelicans that need a helping hand along our Outer Banks’ beautiful beaches, campers will learn how they can join the efforts of the North Carolina Aquariums to protect wild habitats and the amazing wild creatures that call our coast home. 
Virtual week-long camp opportunities will be limited to 15 campers per session, with sessions planned for June, July and August. Morning sessions will be held from 9:00 a.m. to 12:00 p.m. for Grades 3 - 5, while afternoon sessions will be held from 1:00 p.m. to 4:00 p.m. for Grades 6 - 8. The cost per household for this week-long virtual camp experience is $120 (includes 1 program kit). The cost per additional program kit is $30.
Please visit https://reservations.ncaquariums.com/pineknollshores/Info.aspx?EventID=1029 to learn more about how your camper can join us for some Aquarium summer fun. Visit our FAQ page to answer many of your questions or contact us at ( hannah.catherman@ncaquariums.com ) to get more information.  
We look forward to the opportunity to interact with you virtually and have some great times with our animals and staff along the way!
Sincerely,
North Carolina Aquarium Summer Camp Team 
Renee Weeks & Erin Gross - Fort Fisher 
Wayne Justice & Hannah Catherman - Pine Knoll Shores
Beth Wilcox & Dana Thomason -Roanoke Island
Christin Brown & Meredith Fish - Jennette’s Pier

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